St Vincents Hall

The house was designed in the Gothic Revival style and built for the industrialist Richard Hornsby, who founded Richard Hornsby & Sons, an engine and machinery manufacturer, in 1868. before the building was sold to the Air Ministry. The 1920s witnessed many visitors including Tsar Nicholas of Russia's brother fleeing the Bolsheviks. St Vincents Hall is best known for being the Second World War HQ of 5 Group Bomber Command between October 1937 and November 1943 and was where Operation Chastise of May 1943 – immortalized in The Dam Busters film – was planned. On the night of 16/17 May 1943 Air Marshall Arthur Harris, Barnes Wallis and other RAF high command were in St Vincents Hall when coded…

The house is made of rock-faced limestone with ashlar dressings and steeply pitched Welsh slate roofs, with decorative ridge tiles. Ashlar coped gables with moulded kneelers and finials. North front entrance has central projecting gabled wing, with single storey, lean to, porch to the left. The doorway has a pointed arched moulded ashlar surround, with marble shafts, and hood mould. Above is a moulded ashlar parapet pierced with quatrefoils. To the right a 2-light chamfered window, with tracery, above a single plain sash, in a flat headed chamfered surround, with a pointed inner arch. Above again a 3-light, chamfered mullion window, with a taller central light with cusped heads. At the…